1. Technical Field
The following disclosure relates to cooling assemblies having a sealable cooling chamber for cooling liquids or other materials contained in an inner canister and, in particular, relates to cooling assemblies such as ice cream makers having an inner canister for receiving ice cream ingredients and a sealed cavity formed between the inner canister and an outer wall for receiving a chilling substance such as an ice/salt mixture.
2. Related Art
Various types of ice cream and frozen dessert makers are known in the patent literature and many different ice cream makers have been sold commercially. Many ice cream makers have a thermally conductive canister containing the liquid ingredients that mounts in a larger reservoir into which ice and salt are mixed. The ingredient canister is turned or agitated to cool the ingredients in the canister by exposure to the cooled surface of the thermally conductive canister, which is cooled by the ice/salt mixture. Various types of paddles and stirrers have been developed to agitate the liquid ingredients within the canister during the process to facilitate cooling and mixing of the liquid ingredients.
Manual turning and agitation of the canister during the ice cream making process is tedious, and motorized turning systems have been developed. Drawbacks of motorized systems include the necessity of having a nearby electrical source and the possibility of stalling or burning out the motor as a consequence of the canister jamming in the ice/salt bath or an agitation device jamming in the canister.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,857,351, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, discloses an ice cream maker having an inner container with a lid, the inner container being insertable within an outer container, wherein the outer container is encased in a spherical jacket. Ingredients for a frozen dessert may be inserted into the inner container and a mixture of rock salt and ice is insertable in a space between the inner and outer containers. Another lid, formed integrally with the jacket, seals the ice and rock salt in a reservoir located between the inner and outer containers. Because the outer container is spherical, cooling and agitation of the liquid ingredients in the inner container can be accomplished by rolling or tossing or otherwise playing with the spherical ice cream maker to agitate and cool the liquid ingredients. This eliminates any requirement of a motor and provides a fun and entertaining ice cream making experience.